The present invention relates to suture passers and graspers and more particularly to such instruments and methods for their use wherein provision is made to eject the suture therefrom.
Within the field of medical surgery, there are times when a suture needs to be passed through soft tissue, but direct access to the tissue is not possible (e.g. during arthroscopy). Generally, this passage of suture is performed either anterograde or retrograde. In anterograde passing an instrument called a suture passer grasps a strand of suture and is forcibly driven through the soft tissue. Then, the suture is disengaged from the passer and the passer removed from the tissue. Retrograde passing involves driving an empty passer through the soft tissue and then manipulating it such that it captures a length of suture already inside the body. The passer is then removed from the soft tissue and pulls the suture through with it. In both of these cases, one major drawback of the suture passer is that it can be quite difficult to disengage the suture from the jaws of the passer. This is particularly true for the anterograde technique and is mainly due to the fact that the passer jaws open into a fairly large cavity. The surgeon must manipulate the tip of the passer to cause the suture to move sufficiently out of the open jaws that closing the open jaws will no longer cause the suture to become re-trapped by the passer. This process of manipulation can lead to trauma to the surrounding soft tissue up to and including the suture passer ripping through the soft tissue, foiling the repair intent of the suturing and forcing the surgeon to pursue alternate courses of repair of patient treatment. The cavity frequently also is provided with a lip or other structure to assist in the process of capturing the suture, but such features can add difficulty when the surgeon later attempts to expel the suture.